What lakes are worth visiting in Georgia. Lake Paliastomi.

Most of Paliastomi is located in the Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti region, although its western part is part of the Guria region - Lanchkhuti municipality. The surface area of the lake is 18.2 sq. km, the basin area is 547 sq. km, maximum depth is 3 m, volume is 52 million cubic m. Among Georgian lakes Paliastomi is the third largest (after Lake Paravani and Lake Kartsakhi). Small rivers such as Pichori, Shavtkala and Tkhorina flow into the lake. The Kaparchina flows out of the lake and into the Black Sea.

Lake Paliastomi attracts tourists not only with its views and landscapes: there are places to watch migratory birds. Paliastomi together with the nearby marshes, swampy forests and the Black Sea is one of the main staging and wintering grounds of birds flying from Europe to Asia and back. Because of the increased interest in birds of prey, the abundance of migration funnels and places where the world of birds is represented in all its diversity, Lake Paliastomi is becoming more and more interesting for ecotourists and specialists.

In the distant geological past Lake Paliastomi was a bay of the Black Sea. However, in the historical period, it was separated from the sea and formed into a lake. It is assumed that the rivers Rioni, Inguri, Khobi, Supsa and others flowed into the bay. The name of the lake comes from the Greek words "paleo" - old, "stoma" - mouth. Over time, the bay was gradually filled with solid particles abundantly brought by river waters and separated from the sea. At present, the lake is separated from the sea by a sandy strip of two meters.

There is a legend about Lake Paliastomi. In ancient times, on the site of the lake was dry land. It was inhabited by people who were called "Pavlias Tomi" - that is, the tribe of Paul. One day the place began to go down, the earth opened up, and from the depths water gushed out, covering the entire settlement. So the settlement of Paul's tribe" became Paliastomi Lake.